Companies to seek emergency approval for use of COVID-19 vaccines

Vaccines from pharmaceutical companies pfizer and moderna.

News 18's balint szalavari is live in downtown lafayette.

Balint, what steps are still needed before a vaccine can arrive?

Jeff,within the past two weeks, pfizer and moderna have both shown promising results from trials of the covid-19 vaccines.

The results find both vaccines to bmore than 90 percent effective at preventing the virus.

Kuhn: "the time couldn't come quick enough for a vaccine."

With promising results from recent studies, both pfizer and moderna are seeking approval for emergency use of their vaccines..

According to richard kuhn, director at purdue's institute of inflammation, immunology and infectious disease, this could happen within a few weeks.

Kuhn: "both pfizer, which is submitting now, and moderna, which should submit within the next week or two, is going to be approved in mid to early december."

Once approved, distribution could begin.

Purdue's distinguished professor of virology surseh (sue-resh) mittal (mittel) says this will be a major turning point in fighting the virus.

Mittal: "the number of infection will go substantially down in a few weeks time once the vaccination will start."

Mittal says distribution will likely follow the cdc's three step plan.

Mittal: "health care people will get the first doses, and then all the other first responders, the police, firefighters.

After, high risk and older aged individuals will receive the vaccine.

Last will be the general public.

Josh johansen is a lafayette resident and health care worker.

He believes it's important everyone gets the vaccine once it's available.

Johansen: "not everyone can get the vaccine.

Not everyone will be able to get it and to protect those people, we have to get the vaccine ourselves."

And west lafayette resident mikel berger says having a vaccine available would be a step in the right direction.

Berger: "i don't expect a vaccine or any other measure to, you know, totally prevent the virus or anything like thathat can get back towards more of the way things used to be is a good thing."

Pfizer estimates they will be able to produce 50 million doses by the end of this year.

In 2021, they estimate up to 1.3 billion doses.

Reporting live in lafayette, balint szalavari, news 18.

We're still months away from a coronavirus vaccine